Wearing a golf glove on your top hand (left hand for right handed golfers) is optional but encouraged to promote control of the club and prevent blisters. Though often overlooked, the grip is the most important foundation to consistent golf. Moving on to swinging the golf club before mastering the grip will lead to inconsistency, and will likely require relearning how to best hold onto the golf club.

Grip the club with your top hand first, holding the end of the club with your thumb running vertically down the grip. You should see at least two to three knuckles of your top hand while gripping the club. If you see fewer than two knuckles, turn your palm slightly over the grip until at least two are visible.

With your bottom hand (right hand for right handed golfers), fit your pinky finger over and between the index and middle fingers of your top hand while placing your other fingers of the right hand onto the grip with your right thumb covering your left thumb. The complete grip should look similar to the images below of a standard golf grip.

Grip

The key to a good setup in golf is to be balanced and comfortable. Creating a balanced and comfortable setup will lend itself to a more powerful and controllable swing.

Address the golf ball with the end of the club about one fist from your upper thighs. For longer clubs (driver and fairway woods), stand with your feet just beyond shoulder width apart. For shorter clubs (hybrids, irons, and wedges), stand with your feet close to shoulder width apart.

For posture, you should have slight knee flex with all clubs, while bending from the waist. Your bend from the waist will be naturally less with longer clubs and progressively increase as the club you use becomes shorter. The arms should hang relatively straight but without any feeling of stiffness or extension. See the image below for reference.

Setup

In its simplest form, the backswing should feel like a turn of the forward shoulder. In practice, the movement of a golfer’s hips, wrists, arms, and head will significantly impact the likelihood of success on the downswing.

To begin the backswing, the hands move away from the ball while the shoulders turn to pull the club head away from the ball along the intended target line. At halfway back (when the club shaft is parallel to the ground), the club shaft should be in line with the target, as shown below. This is the most critical checkpoint to make sure your backswing is on track at the halfway mark.

Backswing

To complete the backswing, you should continue to turn your forward shoulder until it is just under your chin. From that position, you will have developed enough of a shoulder turn, while setting your hands high enough, to make a powerful and consistent downswing. The end of your backswing should look something like the image below, with your lead arm (left for right handed golfers) on an angle similar to your shoulders, and your hands near the height of your head.

Downswing

The goal of the downswing is to deliver the club into a solid impact position, which will maximize the chances of a solid golf shot. To do so, it is essential to initiate the downswing with your left hip. Specifically, by beginning to open the left hip while the shoulders and arms feel like they stay in the position they reached at the conclusion of the backswing. This will help keep the downswing on plane, rather than causing the club to swing from outside and across the ball, which often causes weak and inconsistent shots.

Once the hips have opened slightly, the chest can begin to turn open as well, followed by the arms and hands, which will cause the club to come through late, producing the feeling of a “late” hit. Though this feeling is difficult to master right away, developing a “late” hit is the most important element to honing a powerful and repeatable golf swing. The first image below shows halfway through the downswing, with the hips and shoulders leading the arms and hands, setting the club in a position for a late hit. The second image shows the position just after impact, with the belly button pointing almost at the target, with the arms and club extending out towards the target.

Conclusion

By gripping the club properly, setting up to the golf ball comfortably and athletically, making a full and controlled backswing, and finishing with a downswing that is led by the lower body, you will give yourself the best possible chance to be successful on each shot you play. The video below shows all the elements detailed above put into action.